We all remember the 3 R’s from grade school, and we still need them; but I am going to tell you about a different group of R’s – ones that can be easily acted upon and results measured.
1) Read It. Many of you know what I’m talking about here. Two thousand plus page bills being passed by Congress that no one reads. The only ones who know what is in the bills, are those who wrote them months or years before and kept them in a desk drawer to be brought out at the right moment. In this case, the perpetrators are Democrat-controlled Congress and Administration. Even when the Democrats say they’ll read the bill and publicly debate it, they manage a sleight of hand. Behind closed doors different cards are being dealt and deals made, out of sight of the people. I advocate Congress honestly read and publicly debate all the bills on which they intend to vote. Let the people see government at work, and end this practice of passing complicated legislation in the dark of night. When this happens the people can only ask, “What is the government trying to hide?”

2) Reduce It. We’re running a $13 trillion debt. Our own government is about to bankrupt the nation, and we are at serious risk of imploding our economy. We must declare “Enough is Enough!” The economic disaster America faces is more than the issue about current taxes, it is the financial burden on our children and grandchildren. If we don’t stop the Democrat’s spending, future generations will labor for the government –not their own pursuit of happiness and the American Dream. In order for all Americans to have equal opportunity for success, they must have economic freedom. A nation buried in the abyss of debt chains everyone. Remember this debt and then ask yourselves, “Where are the jobs this Administration and Democrat Congress promised with all of this spending?” Michigan’s employment rate hasn’t improved, and here in Northern Michigan we have the same pain, and no jobs. Temporary public sector jobs are an unsustainable band-aid to an ailing economy. The people can only have confidence when the private sector is showing strength. Stop spending borrowed money and let the real recovery begin. Let’s remember, too, that this debt is not just an economic issue; it’s a moral issue. It is simply immoral for us to leave the next generation a $13 trillion debt.

3) Repeal It. Repeal the health care bill. Of all the tasks set before the new Congress in January 2011, this is one of the most important. The health care bill did not reform anything in its two-thousand pages–and remember they did not read it either. What it did do is destroy almost everyone’s current plan, with which they were largely satisfied. The health care bill took away people’s freedom to make their own choices. Socialized medicine decreases quality; it can never provide you the care you can choose for yourself with your own purchasing power. The new Congress needs to Repeal It and start over, passing legislation with honest and sensible reforms.

4) Reform It. We must replace career politicians who went to Washington and forgot why they were sent there. The only way “We the People” can take back our government is to change-out the incumbents who have betrayed the people’s trust and will.

We must send people to Congress who will work on the 4 R’s with me.

As the candidate seeking to be your representative from Michigan’s 1st District, I give you my word of honor to stand by these 4 R’s . You and I together can work to restore America to her rightful owners, the people. We will stand up and say once again, as our fellow patriots from so long ago said, “Enough is Enough!”

Remember the 4 R’s. Read It. Reduce It. Repeal It. Reform It.

I’m Dan Benishek and I not only approve this message, but I’ll take it to Washington.